Typically, in a network of a plurality of connected devices, network administration is carried out by creating and holding configuration information that represents information about the connection relationships between the devices functioning as configuration items. More particularly, in some cases, configuration information is created before establishing the network and then the devices are connected according to the configuration information. Meanwhile, a technology is also known for creating configuration information by obtaining information from the devices connected in an already-established network.
However, in a case when a network is not established according to the configuration information or in a case when modifications in a network are not reflected in the configuration information, the configuration information sometimes differs from the actual network configuration. When differences occur between a network and the configuration information, it is desirable to obtain the actual configuration from the network and update the configuration information accordingly (see, for example, Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2004-86729).
Typically, in order to obtain information for identifying the connection relationship from the devices functioning as configuration items of a network, authentication may be required to operate those devices. Moreover, administrator qualification may be required to operate the devices.
As a method for obtaining configuration information without performing authentication or without having administrator qualification, the operator can manually verify the actual network configuration. However, manually verifying the network requires a lot of time and efforts. Particularly, manual verification becomes difficult if the network has a complex configuration or if the network is extensive in scope.